1. Field
This invention relates to apparatus for use in servicing aircraft at airports. More specifically, the invention is directed to aircraft boarding bridges which are adapted for permitting egress from and ingress to an aircraft positioned adjacent to an airport terminal building.
2. Statement of the Art
Aircraft boarding bridges have become a commonplace phenomena at airport terminals both in this country and abroad. Such bridges provide a passageway for aircraft passengers and crew from the terminal building to an aircraft parked proximate to the terminal building. These bridges are highly valued for their ability to shelter aircraft passengers and crew from inclement weather as well as their ability to facilitate access to the aircraft for those having special needs, such as the disabled.
A reoccuring requirement encountered at airports is the need to provide boarding bridge access to a multiplicity of aircraft types. Given the existence of a number of aircraft manufacturers, each with their own particular aircraft doorway design and the lack of a standardized configuration for the entryway of an aircraft, airport service personnel are confronted on a daily basis with the need to provide an accessway to a number of aircraft doorway configurations and orientations with a single boarding bridge assembly.
A primary example of this circumstance are the requirements posed by the door configurations typically found on large commercial aircraft verses the door configurations found on smaller commuter-type aircraft. In the case of the large commercial aircraft, the door is opened by means of a lateral displacement of the door panel, e.g., the door may open by pivoting about a vertical axis. Traditional boarding bridge constructions permit the bridge to be docked against the aircraft fuselage subsequent to the opening of the aircraft door. The many commercial aircraft the door is pivoted about its vertical axis. Since the path of travel of the door is above the floor of the boarding bridge, the positioning of the boarding bridge floor against the sidewall of the aircraft does not impede the opening or closing of the aircraft door. Since the aircraft door does not come into contact with the floor structure of the boarding bridge during either the opening or closing procedure, boarding bridges have typically been constructed to define a planar floor element which is positioned elevationally below the door opening and positioned to extend outwardly from the doorway of the aircraft when the bridge is in a docked position.
In contrast, commuter aircraft oftentimes utilize a door assembly which pivots about a horizontal axis, positioned at the lower end of the door. In many instances, the door of a conventional commuter aircraft is fitted with a series of steps on its interior surface. Furthermore, the door assembly is oftentimes fitted with a handrail assembly which extends upwardly from the opposing sides of the door when the door is lowered into an open position.
In its open position the door defines a stairwell for accessing the aircraft or alternatively deplaning from the aircraft. The fact that commuter aircraft doors pivot about a horizontal axis creates a number of complications for the operator of a conventional boarding bridge structure which has been designed for use with aircraft having doors which pivot about a vertical axis. In those instances wherein a bridge is used to service a commuter aircraft, the bridge is conventionally brought into abutment against the aircraft fuselage subsequent to the opening of the aircraft door. The operator of a conventionally constructed bridge is confronted with the problem of accommodating the boarding bridge to a door having upstanding structure which is not a conventional feature of doors found on commercial aircraft. Of specific concern is the provision of a floor arrangement which provides a safe egress and ingress from the aircraft portal to the main structure of the boarding bridge.
It should be appreciated that aircraft boarding bridges seek to provide a passageway which is of considerable height above the surface of the underlying tarmac. Understandably, considerations of safety play a pivotal role in boarding bridge design. Changes in the configuration of the floor system of a boarding bridge, which are often mandated in transitioning from servicing an aircraft of one type to servicing an aircraft of a different configuration, present a significant safety concern in that adequate measures need to be taken to preclude passengers from inadvertently falling through openings in the floor system which may be created during any reconfiguration of the floor system.
It follows that there presently exists a need for an engagement structure for a boarding bridge which at once addresses the need to provide a means of accommodating varied aircraft door constructions, particularly vertically pivoted doors and horizontally pivoted doors. Some effort has been made in the past to address this issue. One such effort is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,122,789 (Stephenson et al).
Notwithstanding the efforts made in the past, a continuing need exists for an engagement structure adapted for providing a dimensionally adjustable floor system for the transition area between the aircraft and the main structure of the boarding bridge which likewise is suitable for use with both types of aircraft door structures. It is further recognized that such an engagement structure should minimize safety concerns. Such an engagement structure should provide flexibility and adaptability whereby the boarding bridge may be used to service aircraft having a variety of doorway constructions of various dimension, configuration, orientation and operation.